Page 81 of Evermore

His response was immediate.

Hello Paesha darling,

How lovely that you’ve remembered where to find me. I am loath to admit that it was not me within the floorboards, but such a task to see that beautiful face is not at all above me. Are you well? Have you eaten?

Thorne (Always)

I tappedthe end of the pencil to my mouth as I considered what to say next. How far to lead him.

Always Thorne but sometimes Reverius,

How might I find myself if I am lost to madness? If the room hangs upside down and the voices sing of rain and hammers? Am I well? I am not unwell. Am I? Do you remember how you promised a path for me? Remember when you said you’d do anything to keep me safe? Funny how promises sound so beautiful until they shatter.

Sometimes Unwell,

Paesha Marian Vox

Paesha Marian,

If you’re lost to madness, then I will find my way there too. If the room hangs upside down, I’ll walk the ceiling. If the voices sing of rain and hammers, I’ll learn the melody and we will dance together. Whatever madness you’re piecing together, I’ll be thefool who tries to make sense of it. Can you tell me what you ate today?

Still only Thorne

Keeper of Thorns,

What a noble fool you are, offering to wade into my madness as though it were a shallow stream instead of an endless sea. Tell me, how do you plan to keep your footing when even I can no longer feel the ground? The voices whisper that you will drown. Do you fear it? Do you dream of it?

I ate nothing but the words I wished you’d say aloud instead of writing. They were bitter, but I am full. Alastor says that’s not a meal, but he doesn’t understand hunger the way I do. Not the way you do. Do you?

Come, Thorne. Come and prove you can swim. Or perhaps I’ll drift so far that even you cannot follow.

Treading the edges,

Paesha Marian Vox

My Paesha,

I know what you must think, but I did not refuse to go to the Forgotten to keep you chained. The law is absolute. If I go there, I may not return. And ifI cannot return to you, there is no point to going at all, not when there must be another way.

I will find another key to your freedom. If it lies in a place darker than the Forgotten, I will go. If it demands a price heavier than my immortality, I will pay it. If it means tearing apart everything I have ever been, then I will do so gladly—because you are worth it, Paesha. You have always been worth it.

You may think yourself lost to madness, but I will gladly lose my mind if it means finding you. Tell me how to follow. Give me a thread to hold, and I will trace it through every shadow, every storm.

You are not a song I can forget. You are the melody that breaks me, over and over, and still, I will sing it.

Yours,

Thorne

My mind racedas my eyes read and reread his words. Why was he so very good at lying beautifully and so very bad at meaning it? He could have been so fucking easy to love if he had been only Thorne. But that was never going to be.

Your Thorne,

I danced with you once. And you sang in the blue fire. You burned and let Alastor put the chains around mywrists. I remember in small moments. When the voices sleep. When they don’t whisper of murder and vengeance. Did the sun shine today? Can you see the flowers? Can you see me?

Paesha plus some others

The Remnants swirled approvingly around the edges of the page, dark tendrils seeming to caress the words. I closed the book, not trusting myself to continue this back and forth with him. He was not a victim. Nor would he be the victor. That was all that mattered right now. I had barely pushed the book under my pillow when Alastor walked in, carrying a tray.